Process for treating hydrocarbon oils



Oct. 20, 1931. G. EGLOFF ET AL 1,827,333

PROCESS FOR TREATING HYDROCARBON OILS Original Filed June 26 1920 Patented Oct. 20, 1931 'uNrrso STATES PATENT OFFICE GUSTAV EGLOFF AND HARRY P. IBENNEB, OF CHICAGO, Il'JLINOIS, ASSIGNORS '10 EAL OIL PRODUCTS COMPANY, OQOHIOAGO, ILLINOIS, A. CORPORATION OI SO'UTE DAKOTA YRDOESS FOB- TBEATING HYDROOARBON OILS Application filed June 28, 1920, Serial No. 391,926. Renewed Kay 29, 1928.

Our invention relates to a process for the treating of heavy hydrocarbons and refers more particularly to a process for cracking the oil to produce gasoline or other light oils therefrom.

' Among the primary objects of our invention are to provide a process for the production of gasoline or the like and a higher Baum gravity asoline, by means of pres- 1 sure distillation 1n one system; to provide a process of pressure distillation of heavy hydrocarbon oils to produce light oils therefrom, by means of superheating a portion of the generated hydrocarbon vapors of the system and diverting the other portion to a separate dephlegmation system and condenser; to provide a process of pressure distillation of heavy hydrocarbon oils to produce gasoline or other light oils therefrom by means of returning the refractory dephlegmated oils to the hottest art of the double high pressure still whi e taking oflc two pressure distillate oils from the one system; to provide a process in which the fuel costs are relatively low due to the products of combustion passing around the pressure still in which the hydrocarbon oil is contained, con-' tinue and act as'superheating agent for the second pressure still of the double high pressure still to provide a process in which the capacity factor and heatin area in relationship to the gallonage of 011 charged is large; to provide a process in which the construc- M tion costs are low compared to the capacity factor of the cracking unit.

The single figure of the drawing is a view partly in vertical section and partly in side elevation of our. improved apparatus.

Referring to the drawing, 1 is a burner set .within the furnace 2, the products of combustion of which pass around high pressure stills 3 and 4, by way of a perforated floor in said furnace passing out of stack 26. 5 and 6 are manhole plates on high pressure stills 3 and 4. Nozzles 4a connect high pressure stills 3 and 4 with one another, and' said nozz1 es extend above the floor of high pressure st1ll 4. 7 is a residuum pipe attached to pressure still 3, controlled by valve 8'and pipe connections 9 to storage tank for said residuum oil. 10 is a pressure gauge upon pressure still 4. 11 is a hydrocarbon vapor line from high pressure still 4 passing through pipe 12, to headers 13 and 14 connected with dephlegmator 15, attached to header 16. From said dephlegmator, the dephlegmated liquid runs back into pipe connections 11a into bottom of high pressure still 4. 17 is a conduit for uncondensed vapors passing through condenser coil 18 set within water condenser box 19. 20 is a pipe connection to condenser coil 18 passing the condensed liquid into receiver 21 for the pressure distillate oil. The uncondensable gases formedduring the cracking reaction pass out through pipe 26, controlled by valve 25, through pipe 27 to a gas storage tank not shown. 28 is a gauge glass attached to receiver 21 to note the level of the pressure distillate oil in receiver 21. The pressure distillate oil in receiver 21 is controlled by valve 23 connected with pipe 22 and connected with a storage tank by connections 24, and said storage tank is not shown in the drawing. 29 is goose-neck piping attached to pressure still 3, connected with vapor line 30, having headers 31 and 32 attached to dephlegmator 33, connected with header 34. The dephlegmated hydrocarbon oil in said dephlegmator runs back vapor line 30, through connections 29a, attached to high pressure still 3. Conduit 35 carries ofli the uncondensed hydrocarbon vapors connected with condenser coil 36 set within water condenser box 19. Piping37 carries the condensed liquid and uncondensable gases into receiver 38. The uncondensable gas of the cracking reaction is controlled by valve 42, connected to receiver 38, by piping 43, said valve having connections 44 ,t q. a gas storage tank not shown. 90

lit)

t Gauge glass 45 shows thepressure distillate oil level in receiver 38 which passes out via pipe 39 controlled by valve 40 with connections 41 to a storage tank not shown in the drawing. 46 are pressure gauges upon receivers 21 and 38.

One method of operation of the process and apparatus is to change the high pressure still 3 to approximately 5% ofits capacity and this charge may be varied, depending upon the type of hydrocarbon oil to be cracked. The uncondensable gas valves 25 and 42 are closed as also are 23 and 40 which control the pressure distillate liquid produced from the cracking of said hydrocarbon oil. Burner 1 is ignited, the products of combustion of which pass around high pressure stills 3 and 4, heating the hydrocar bon liquid charge and producing a predetermined hydrocarbon vapor pressure upon the entire system. When the predetermined pressure of self-generated hydrocarbon vapor is impressed upon the system, the uncondensable gas control valves 25 and 42 are opened, maintaining thereby a constant vapor pressure upon the entire system while pressure distillation is taking place. In this process and apparatus during pressure distillation, two liquid streams of pressure distillate oil are taken off simultaneously. The product from the high pressure still 4 is of a higher Baum gravity than the products taken off from the top of the high pressure still 3.

During the pressure distillation part of the hydrocarbon vapors generated in the high pressure still 3, pass through nozzles 4a to high pressure still 4 where they are superheated by the products of combustion of furnace 2. The hydrocarbon vapors in high pressure still 4 pass out through goose-neck 11, through vapor line 12 and dephlegmator 15, through conduit 17 and condenser coil 18, to receiver 21. The dephlegmated liquid from dephlegmator 15 falls back into the super-heated high pressure still 4 to be recracked and producing therefrom lighter hydrocarbons.- While the generated hydrocarbon vapors from liquid in high pressure still 3 in part pass to high pressure still 4, the balance of the hydrocarbon vapors pass out via goose-neck connections 29 to vapor line 30 and dephlegmator 33, to conduit 35 and coil condenser 36 to receiver 38. The dephlegmated oil in dephlegmator 33 runs back through vapor line 30 through connections 29a, back into the high pressure still 3. The pressure distillate oil from high pressure still 3 is of a lower Baum gravity than the pressure distillate oil which has resulted from the superheating action in said high pressure still 4.

The value of the high gravity pressure distillate oil from the superheating action of high pressure still 4, lies in. its low initial aeaaeae boiling point, which es it particularly useful for blending purposes wlth straight run gasoline which has a high initial boiling point and high end boiling point so as to brin both, the initial boilin point and end boi ing point down for mar etable puroses. At the present time it is necessa to lend casinghead gasoline with high imtial boiling point and high end boiling point straight run gasoline rom certain crude petroleums. I v

A typical run upon this process and a pa ratus of a double high pressure still ta ng ofi two distinct pressure distillate oils in one operation produced 60 percent of 54.0 gravity pressure distillate oil from 33.0 gravity gasoil from wax oil out of a Kansas crude oil. Of this 60 percent of pressure distillate oil, 25 percent was produced by means of the superheating action of the upper high ressure still of the double high pressure sti and had a gravity of 63.0 Baum while at the same time 35 percent of pressure distillate oil was taken ofi from the lower high pressure still of the double high pressure still having a Baum'gravit of 48.0. The average Baum gravlty o the 60 percent of pressure distillate oil was 54.0. U on the basis of gas oil used there was r need 36 percent of a 58.0 Baum gravity gasoline.

It is to be particularly noted that a substantial percentage of kerosene will be obtained from the pressure distillate which passes out of the lower still 3. The increasing demand and increasing rices of kerosene may make it highly desirab e to increase the production of kerosene.

We claim as our invention: 1. The process of treating hydrocarbon oils, comprising introducin a supply of oil to a still, in vaporizing oil-introduced thereto, in discharging a portion of the vapors to a reflux condenser, in returning condensate from the condenser to the still, in discharging the vapors from the reflux condenser for condensation, in collecting the condensed vapors, in discharging another portion of the vapors from sai st1ll to a superheating still, in superheating the vapors therein by the furnace gases from said first still, in dis charging superheated vapors from said last mentioned still to a reflux condenser, in returning reflux condensate to said su erheating still and in discharging vapors om the reflux condenser to a second condenser and in separately collecting said condensed vapors. v

2. A process for treating hydrocarbon oil comprising initially introducing the oil to a still, heating the oil to a cracking temperature, discharging one portion of the vapors evolved from the oil to a reflux condenser, discharging another portion of the vapors from the still to an independent superheating zone to be superheated therein, remov-.

ing the superheated vapors from said superheating zone and subjecting the superheated vapors to reflux condensation, and returning the reflux condensate separated from that portion of the vapors passed directly to the reflux condenser and the reflux condensate separated from the vapors removed from the superheating zone to further treatment in the process.

GUSTAV EGLOFF.

HARRY P. BENNER. 

